This blog is written by a former Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) Employee of the Year who worked in, managed and trained CRA's Collections Department staff for almost 11-years. inTAXicating provides information, support and solutions for everything CRA related, including but not limited to; Collections, Enforcement, Audits, Liens, Back-Filing, Assessments, Director's Liability, s160 Assessments, Taxpayer Relief, Voluntary Disclosure, Bankruptcies, Proposals, Mortgages and diagnosing and solving the most complex of tax problems. Contact us for a free consultation! Should you need to hire us, you will find us to be Experienced, Honest and On Your Side. Email us at info@intaxicating.ca, and let's begin solving your tax problems together!

Tag: canada revenue agency

SEO, in case you were not aware is the acronym for Search Engine Optimization, and is a marketing technique which focuses on growing the visibility of your web-site through non-paid search engine results.

To get a higher ranking website, you need a combination of good content and your site has to hit the right keywords. Doing this will drive traffic to the website, and all of this helps the search engines know that your site needs to be shown to people searching for whatever you have written about.

It stands to reason then, that just because you created a web-site (or blog) it doesn’t mean that anyone will see it or read it. The site has to be “indexed”, meaning that it needs to show up in search engines, and it gets indexed by having people show up and visit the site.

The more visitors, the higher the ranking.

What does SEO spam have to do with businesses failing? Directly, a lot, yet indirectly, a lot as well.

In and amongst the spam I get at http://www.intaxicating.ca, I seem to get a LOT of pitches from SEO companies who promise to help me get your website on the “first page of Google”.

Now, I know that a lot of these inquiries are spam because they are fraudulent – trying to steal identities and money – however there are some real companies who reach out to help me improve my site’s ranking.

If you are going to take the time to make a pitch to company, should you not check before you reach out to ensure that you are offering a service which they actually need?

Some of the blog posts contained on the inTAXicating blog already come up on the first page of Google. In fact, several inTAXicating posts come up before the Canada Revenue Agency when they are being searched.

Forget the offer to be on the 1st page of Google searches. When you’re number 1 already, why even make the offer of service.

If you cannot see that, what else are you going to miss which is a lot less obvious?

Business fail because they do not take the time to check their prospective client(s) out and they end up making a pitch which shows there is no attention to detail being paid.

In the meantime, when you have a tax issue, and you need the best, contact inTAXicating. We rank higher than the CRA on CRA tax matters for a reason.

The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) have charged a quartet of “tax protesters” in Québec with tax fraud, alleging that the 4 operated a scheme which helped over 50 participants evade more than $1 million in federal income tax.

Allegations, not yet proven in court, claim that they advised 50 taxpayers to claim losses totalling more than $19 million in losses, or close to $1.08 million in federal income tax.

Pierre Cardin and Sylvain Quirion of Montreal, Jean-Marc Paquin from Laval, and Contrecoeur resident Guylaine Tremblay were arrested and released with a promise to appear, and court-imposed conditions, the CRA reported.

The CRA used this opportunity to reiterate its warning against getting involved with tax protestors, noting that Canadian courts have consistently rejected these schemes.

“For those involved in tax protester schemes, the CRA will reassess income tax, calculate interest and impose penalties,” the announcement says. “In addition, upon a conviction for tax evasion, the court may impose a fine between 50% and 200% of the tax evaded and a jail term of up to five years.”

Earlier this year, the CRA issued an alert about tax schemes claiming that, “natural people” are not subject to tax laws, because it’s not true.

“Individuals who promote such views are “tax protesters” who not only fail to report their own earnings, but they also try to convince others to engage in these illegal activities,” the CRA said in the alert.

The CRA has always kept an eye on these sorts of schemes and regularly uses the opportunity to promote situations where charges are laid, or where the court charges fraudsters in order to remind Canadians to steer clear of this type of tax evasion.

Recently, the CRA reported that, between 2006 and 2017, 75 promoters had been convicted in connection with these kinds of schemes, resulting in $7.15 million in fines and a total of 936 months of jail time.

If someone is charging you money to teach you how to pay less tax, you might want to steer clear.

If, however, you have taken part in a scam, or scheme, or if you believe that you are a “natural person” and that taxation does not apply to you, please send me an email to info@intaxicating, so we can discuss the very significant consequences which you can face.

The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) announced that, on December 4, 2017, David Porter Wilson of Cobourg, Ontario, was sentenced to a fine of $97,173 after pleading guilty in the Ontario Court of Justice in Cobourg, Ontario, to two counts of income tax evasion.

In addition to the court imposed fine, Wilson will also have to pay the full amount of tax owing, plus related interest and any penalties assessed by the CRA.

A CRA investigation revealed that Wilson failed to report income that he earned as a commissioned salesperson for a marketing company, totalling $449,745 on his personal tax returns for 2006 and 2007, thereby evading federal income taxes totalling $97,173. While under investigation, Wilson left Canada, and after the charges were laid an arrest warrant was issued on September 7, 2011. Wilson did not return to Canada until August 9, 2017.

All case-specific information above was obtained from the court records.

The CRA takes tax evasion very seriously.

Tax evasion occurs when an individual or business wilfully ignores or disregards Canada’s tax laws. For example, those participating in tax evasion under-report taxable income or claim expenses that are non-deductible or overstated.

Those who do not fully comply with tax laws place an unfair burden on law-abiding taxpayers and businesses and jeopardize the integrity of Canada’s tax base.

For the five-year period of April 1, 2012 to March 31, 2017, the courts have convicted 408 taxpayers – This involved $122 million in federal tax evaded and court sentences totaling approximately $44 million in court fines and 3,103 months in jail.

If you have made an omission in your dealings with the CRA, made a tax mistake or left out details about income on your tax return, the Agency may give you a second chance to correct your tax affairs and avoid criminal prosecution.

The Voluntary Disclosures Program (VDP) may give you the opportunity to come forward, make things right, and have peace of mind. Disclosures that are made before the CRA launches an enforcement action such as an audit or criminal investigation may only result in you having to pay taxes owed plus interest. That being said, the VDP is currently under review. Changes were announced in the fall of 2017. More information on the VDP can be found on the CRA’s website at Canada.ca/taxes-voluntary-disclosures.

The CRA has set up a free subscription service to help Canadians stay current on the CRA’s enforcement efforts.

If you live in Southern Ontario, you are in the middle of a heat wave. Summer came back bigger, badder, stronger than it had all summer, and with humidex readings in the low 40’s, all the talk is about cooling off and extending the cottage season.

And there is nothing wrong with it.

But as the calendar creeps towards October, we enter the last quarter of the year and this is traditionally the best time of year to finally seek resolution on that nagging Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) tax problem.

The tax problem that causes you so much stress that you cannot open the brown envelopes from the CRA.

The tax problem which resulted in the CRA freezing your bank account or garnishing your wages.

That nagging tax issue which prompted the CRA to register a lien against your property.

The one that prevents you from having a full night’s sleep.

Yes, that one.

Well worry no more because help is here.

No matter how big, or small, complex or simple, we have seen them all, and resolved them all. At the very least, after a meeting with us, you will understand the truth behind your tax problem – whether you have a chance of having it overturned or whether you actually are on the hook for the balance.

After a meeting with us, you can finally start on the pathway to resolving your tax troubles and no longer worry that when you try to use your debit card it might not work because the CRA froze your bank account and withdrew all of the funds.

The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) announced that James Harvey Cameron, a former resident of Calgary, has been sentenced to 11 years in jail and fined $550,892 after defrauding investors of over $2.5 million through a deceptive investment scheme. The judge also ordered Cameron, 66, to pay restitution of $1,831,700 to his victims.

If Mr. Cameron fails to pay his fine in six months he will have to serve an additional four years in jail for default.

From 2002-2006, Cameron operated a fraudulent RRSP scheme which promised a 2% monthly return to individual investors. The scheme raised just under $8 million, but only paid out a total of $882,000 to investors. Cameron misappropriated the funds to support his luxurious lifestyle, including buying property, cars, a horse, and a $75,000 cruise in the Bahamas. He also transferred funds offshore to Barbados.

A Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) investigation proved that Cameron diverted $3.9 million of the investors’ funds for his own use and failed to report this as income on his tax returns, evading $1,132,882 in taxes.

“I have no doubt whatsoever that [Cameron] executed a deceptive investment scheme with subjective knowledge of the prohibited act and consequences,” said presiding judge, Justice P.R. Jeffrey, in his written reasons for convicting Cameron. “The CRA acted towards him with considerable patience, forbearance and fairness. He was given ample opportunity to provide to CRA any plausible alternate explanation for what occurred, yet did not.”

Justice Jeffrey commented in his sentencing report: “The $1,831,700 I have ordered payable in restitution should be subtracted from his [Cameron] total taxable income… therefore I find his taxable income to have been $2,118,817.”

Cameron was convicted of tax evasion under the Income Tax Act and fraud under the Criminal Code.

All case-specific information in this news release was obtained from the court records.

Did you know that between April 1, 2012, and March 31, 2017, total domestic and offshore related criminal investigations have resulted in 408 convictions involving $122 million in federal tax evaded and court sentences totaling approximately $44 million in court fines and 3,103 months in jail?

Taxpayer Relief.

Important note: A request for relief from penalty and / or interest amounts does not stop or suspend collection activity on an account or the accrual of interest.

Information you must include with your request

It is important that you provide the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) with a complete and accurate description of the circumstances to explain why your situation merits relief.

In order to support a request, you should provide all relevant information including the following, where applicable:
• your name, address, and telephone number;
• your social insurance number (SIN), account number, partnership number, trust account number, business number (BN), or any other identification number assigned to you by the CRA;
• the tax year(s) or fiscal period(s) involved;
• the facts and reasons supporting that the interest or penalty were either mainly caused by factors beyond your control, or were the result of actions by the CRA;
• an explanation of how the circumstances affected your ability to meet your tax obligations;
• the facts and reasons supporting your inability to pay the penalties or interest assessed or charged, or to be assessed or charged;
• any relevant supporting documentation such as death certificates, doctor’s statements, or insurance statements;
• in cases involving an inability to pay or financial hardship, full financial disclosure including a statement of income, expenses, assets, and liabilities (to help individuals provide full financial disclosure);
• supporting details of incorrect information given by the CRA in the form of written answers, published information, other evidence; or when the incorrect information given by the CRA is of a verbal nature, you should give all possible details such as date, time, name of CRA official spoken to, and details of the conversation; or
• a complete history of events including any measures that have been taken, e.g., payments and payment arrangements, and when they were taken to resolve the non-compliance.

Note: You may submit photocopies of supporting documents. During the course of our review, the CRA may contact you if they need additional information or documentation, however that is not common.

Other considerations
• Indicate with your request if this is the first or second review request. A second review request is when you ask the CRA to reconsider its original decision.
You must include Form RC4288, Request for Taxpayer Relief – Cancel or Waive Penalties or Interest to make a request to cancel penalties or interest.

You can also write a letter marked “Taxpayer Relief”.

Submitting the Application

You can submit your request to cancel penalties and / or interest and all supporting documents:
• online at My Account, My Business Account, or Represent a Client, by selecting the “Submit documents” service; or
• by mail at one of the designated offices below.
For more information on the Submit Documents online service, go to Submit documents online.

The Canada Revenue Agency has announced to tax preparers and representatives that if they wish to have online access to a business client’s tax information after May 15, 2017 they will have to complete the authorization request in the Represent a Client section on the CRA web site.

In order to do this, tax representatives have to log into Represent a Client and select “Review and update” from the Welcome page. They then select “Authorization request” at the bottom of the “Manage clients” tab and follow the instructions.

Once the request is complete, tax representatives will need to print the signature page for their client to sign. Once it is signed, a scanned copy of the document may be sent to the CRA using its submit documents feature.

Using this method will allow tax professionals to gain access to their business clients’ information in five days or less instead of the 15 days it currently takes with form RC59.

If, however, you still prefer your current process, you can still use form RC59 to request access to your business clients’ information by telephone or mail.

And if you need to have authorization in less that 5 days, you should reach out to us here at inTAXicating, because with almost 11-years’ experience working in the CRA’s Collections department, we know how to get that authorization in the hands of someone in minutes!

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About inTAXicating

This is the blog for inTAXicating.ca

inTAXicating was created by Warren Orlans, a Canadian Tax Consultant and former Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) Employee of the Year who worked in the CRA for almost 11-years in their Collections Department.

inTAXicating provides expertise in the area of Tax Liability Solutions and assisting Canadians to understand how the CRA operates.

In order to provide you with the best Tax Solution services possible, we work with Mortgage Brokers. Tax Lawyers, Accountants, Bookkeepers and Insolvency Practitioners to ensure that you get the best experience during a difficult time as you fix your tax problems.